Check if notifications are actually turned off for that app
The most common reason you are not getting notifications is that you have turned them off without realizing it — either for the whole app or for a specific notification type. Open Settings, tap Notifications, then find the app you are not hearing from. If the toggle next to the app name is gray, notifications are off entirely. If it is green but you see toggles below it for Allow Notifications, Sounds, or Badges that are gray, those specific features are disabled.
You may have also silenced notifications without meaning to. If you see Allow Notifications turned on but Sounds is off, the app will still send notifications — you just will not hear them. The notification will appear on your lock screen or in the notification center, but your phone will not make a sound or vibrate. This is straightforward to miss because the app is technically sending the notification; your phone is just not alerting you to it.
Key Takeaways
- Notifications are off for an app if the toggle in Settings > Notifications is gray, or if Sounds and Badges are individually disabled.
- Do Not Disturb mode silences all notifications except from contacts you have starred, even if individual apps have notifications turned on.
- Focus modes (Work, Sleep, Driving, etc.) can block notifications from specific apps during certain times without you remembering you set them.
- If notifications are on but you are not seeing them, check whether your iPhone is in Low Power Mode or whether the app itself needs permission to send notifications in iOS settings.
- Some apps require you to turn on notifications twice — once in iOS Settings and once inside the app itself.
Do Not Disturb mode is blocking notifications you want to see
Do Not Disturb silences all incoming notifications, calls, and alerts except from people in your Favorites. If you turned it on and forgot about it, your phone will not alert you to anything else. Check the top-right corner of your screen — if you see a crescent moon icon, Do Not Disturb is active. Swipe down from the top-right corner to open Control Center and tap the crescent moon icon to turn it off.
Do Not Disturb can also be scheduled. If you set it to turn on at a certain time every day (like 10 p.m.), it will set up automatically even if you do not remember setting it. Go to Settings > Focus > Do Not Disturb to see whether a schedule is active. If you see a time listed under Turn On Automatically, that is why notifications stopped at that time.
A Focus mode is filtering out notifications from specific apps
Focus modes (Work, Sleep, Driving, Personal) let you silence notifications from certain apps during certain times. Unlike Do Not Disturb, which blocks almost everything, a Focus mode can be set to allow notifications from some apps but not others. If you set up a Work Focus that blocks notifications from social media apps, those apps will stay silent during work hours even though notifications are turned on in Settings.
The problem is that Focus modes can be straightforward to forget about. You may have set one up weeks ago and do not remember it is still active. Open Settings > Focus and look at the list. If one is highlighted in blue, it is currently active. Tap it to see which apps are allowed and which are blocked. If the app you are not hearing from is in the blocked list, that is your answer. You can either turn off the Focus mode or edit it to allow notifications from that app.
The app itself has notifications turned off in its own settings
Some apps have their own notification settings separate from iOS Settings. Even if you turn on notifications in Settings > Notifications, the app might have a toggle inside it that overrides that choice. Open the app, go to its settings or preferences (usually a gear icon or menu), and look for a Notifications section. Turn on whatever toggle controls notifications within that app.
This is especially common with email apps, messaging apps, and social media. Gmail, for example, has notification settings both in iOS and inside the Gmail app itself. If you turn on notifications in iOS but leave them off in Gmail, you will not get alerts. The same applies to Facebook, Instagram, Slack, and many others. If an app is not sending notifications even though iOS Settings shows them as on, check inside the app first.
Your iPhone is in Low Power Mode
Low Power Mode reduces battery drain by limiting background activity. One side effect is that some notifications may not arrive as quickly or at all, because the app is not allowed to refresh in the background as often. If your battery is below 20 percent, Low Power Mode turns on automatically. Check the top-right corner of your screen — if you see a yellow battery icon, Low Power Mode is active.
To turn it off, open Settings > Battery and tap the toggle next to Low Power Mode. Once it is off, apps can refresh in the background again and notifications should arrive normally. If you want to keep Low Power Mode on to save battery, be aware that notifications from some apps may arrive with a delay.
The app does not have permission to send notifications
When you first open an app, iOS asks whether you want to allow it to send notifications. If you tapped Don't Allow, the app cannot send notifications at all, even if you turn them on later in Settings. Go to Settings > Notifications, find the app, and look at the top. If you see Allow Notifications with a toggle, make sure it is green. If the app is not listed in Notifications at all, it has never been granted permission.
To fix this, go to Settings > Privacy > Notifications and find the app. If it shows Deny, tap it and change it to Allow. Then go back to Settings > Notifications and turn on notifications for that app. The next time the app tries to send a notification, your phone should receive it.
Your notification settings got reset or changed unexpectedly
If notifications were working and then suddenly stopped, your settings may have changed. This can happen after you update iOS, restore from a backup, or sign into a new device. Check Settings > Notifications and verify that the apps you care about have notifications turned on. Look for any Focus modes that might have been restored from a backup and are now blocking notifications.
If you recently updated iOS, some apps may have had their notification permissions reset to off as a security measure. Go through your most-used apps and turn notifications back on for the ones you want to hear from. If you restored from a backup, the Focus modes and Do Not Disturb schedules from your old phone came with it, so check those first.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why do I see notifications on my lock screen but do not hear a sound?
Sounds are turned off for that app. Go to Settings > Notifications, find the app, and make sure the Sounds toggle is green. You can also choose which sound plays by tapping Sound and selecting from the list.
My notifications work sometimes but not always. What is going on?
A Focus mode is probably active during certain times. Check Settings > Focus to see if any Focus modes are scheduled to turn on automatically. If one is blocking the app you are not hearing from, either turn off the Focus mode or edit it to allow that app through.
I turned notifications on in Settings but the app still is not sending them. What else can I check?
Open the app itself and look for its own notification settings, usually in a menu or preferences section. Many apps have notification toggles inside the app that override iOS Settings. If that does not work, check Settings > Privacy > Notifications to make sure the app has permission to send notifications.
Do Not Disturb turned on by itself. How do I stop that?
It is probably scheduled. Go to Settings > Focus > Do Not Disturb and look for Turn On Automatically. If a time is listed, tap it and turn off the schedule. You can also remove the schedule entirely by tapping Edit and deleting the automation.
Why did my notifications stop working after I updated my iPhone?
iOS updates sometimes reset notification permissions or restore old Focus modes from a backup. Check Settings > Notifications to see if your apps are still turned on, and check Settings > Focus to see if any Focus modes are active that you forgot about.